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88-419: It was known as ( Cancom ) prior to its acquisition by Shaw. On October 5, 2006, Shaw announced that CANCOM would be renamed Shaw Satellite Services, with CANCOM Broadcast becoming Shaw Broadcast Services, and CANCOM Tracking becoming Shaw Tracking, in 2007. As Cancom, the service was originally owned by a consortium of several Canadian broadcasting companies, but ownership changes eventually consolidated Shaw as

176-447: A gorilla costume to represent his status as " second banana " to Malone. Yet he had a reputation as "a shrewd and sometimes vicious negotiator". In 1995, TCI acquired the cable television assets of Viacom . In May 1991 United Artists announced a merger deal with their largest shareholder TCI (now Liberty Media ) to form the largest cable operator in the US, a deal valued at $ 142.5m for

264-503: A Canadian network licenses a television show from a US network and shows it in the same time slot, upon request by the Canadian broadcaster, Canadian broadcast distributors must replace the show on the US channel with the broadcast of the Canadian channel, along with any overlays and commercials. As Grey's Anatomy is on ABC , but is carried in Canada on CTV at the same time, for instance,

352-644: A comeback, and Michael Mahoney of GT Capital expected the proposed deregulation of the cable and telephone industries to increase cable company revenues. Both expected TCI to benefit, especially since TCI owned 30 percent of a joint venture that included Sprint and 10 cable companies with the ability to serve 40 percent of American homes. Cable and phone companies could both offer each other's services, benefiting both companies and customers with product bundling . TCI had plans to upgrade to digital cable and offer more channels and services. Satellite TV providers would be competing to offer digital service, but TCI owned

440-456: A continental system, and trying to impose 35% Canadian content across North America is quite unrealistic. They also argue that satellite radio will boost Canadian culture by giving vital exposure to independent artists, instead of concentrating just on the country's stars, and point to the CRTC's successful extraction of promises to program 10% Canadian content on satellite services already operational in

528-553: A major threat yet, represented a possible problem in the future. The good news: satellite companies could not offer local channels or phone service, and individual dishes served only one TV. The new technologies had two benefits for TCI. First, customers would need set-top boxes, which TCI already had ordered from General Instrument. Another advantage was technology developed by a new company called Imedia which would allow four times as many channels to be delivered using existing technology, even in areas not getting fiber-optic service. On

616-413: A monitoring service would cost, the end-result was that no cable company elected to carry the station, either, leaving many Arabic-speaking Canadians using free-to-air satellite dishes to watch the station. The Canadian Jewish Congress has expressed its opinion over possible anti-Semitic incitement on this station and that the restrictions on Al Jazeera are appropriate, while the Canadian B'nai Brith

704-582: A monthly allotment of 60 GB, beyond which Bell will charge $ 1.12 per GB to a maximum of $ 22.50. If a customer uses more than 300 GB a month, Bell will also be able to implement an additional charge of 75 cents per gigabyte. In May 2010, the CRTC ruled that Bell could not implement its usage-based billing system until all of its own retail customers had been moved off older, unlimited downloading plans. The requirement would have meant that Bell would have to move its oldest and most loyal customers. The CRTC also added that Bell would be required to offer to wholesale ISPs

792-549: A more complicated problem for the CRTC. While an unlicensed satellite dish can often be identified easily, satellite radio receivers are much more compact and can rarely be easily identified, at least not without flagrantly violating provisions against unreasonable search and seizure in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms . Some observers argued that this influenced the CRTC's June 2005 decision to ease Canadian content restrictions on satellite radio (see above). The CRTC

880-469: A nationwide system upgrade. The Bell Atlantic deal also fell victim to new federal regulations that reduced cable bills up to 16 percent, costing TCI $ 300 million over two years. Higher spending coupled with lower cash receipts made TCI less attractive to investors, and the stock price dropped to $ 17 a share, half what experts believed the company was worth. Bill Nygren of Harris Associates , known for profiting from TCI's Liberty Media, said TCI could make

968-585: A nearby American city: the three commercial networks plus PBS. Cable companies further from the border, if they could offer this, had to use microwave, while many more could not afford to do so at all. In 1982, CANCOM proposed adding additional radio signals and four additional television stations, originating in the United States, in order to bring the American "three-plus-one" package to all Canadians. The CRTC approved and, on 1 September 1983, CANCOM began transmitting

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1056-459: A new "open entry" approach to foreign controlled "third language" (non-English, non-French) channels. Al Jazeera : Was approved by the CRTC in 2004 as an optional cable and satellite offering, but on the condition that any carrier distributing it must edit out any instances of illegal hate speech. Cable companies declared that these restrictions would make it too expensive to carry Al Jazeera. Although no cable company released data as to what such

1144-535: A partner with Magness in establishing a partnership for cable TV in Montana. George C. Hatch and Brian Glasmann were also partners in the companies known as Community Television Inc. and Western Microwave Inc. The Magness family moved to Bozeman. Six systems were built, serving a total of 12,000 homes. In 1962, Magness purchased Collier Electric Company, which had subscribers in Wyoming , Colorado , and Nebraska , bringing

1232-410: A plan to buy TCI, second to Time Warner among cable operators with 13 million customers, for $ 32 billion in stock and $ 16 billion in assumed debt. This marked the first major merger between phone and cable since deregulation. The new company, to be called AT&T Consumer Services, planned to "significantly accelerate" efforts to offer digital telephone , data and video services as the companies combined

1320-410: A policy of non-interference. In May 2011, in response to the increase presence of Over-the-Top (OTT) programming, the CRTC put a call out to the public to provide input on the impact OTT programming is having on Canadian content and existing broadcasting subscriptions through satellite and cable. On October 5, 2011, the CRTC released their findings that included consultations with stakeholders from

1408-657: A share of Primestar , and predicted a 28 percent share of the satellite market by the end of 1995. In Fall 1995, Time Warner agreed to exchange $ 8 billion in stock for 82 percent of Turner Broadcasting System . TCI would trade its 21 percent interest in Turner for the third largest stake in Time Warner, or 9 percent. Since the resulting companies would have 40 percent of cable households, enough to cause anti-trust concern, TCI agreed to let Time Warner's Gerald Levin represent TCI. This did not satisfy federal regulators. Malone ended

1496-583: A statement calling on the CRTC to review its approval of two new radio stations, Frank Torres' CIDG-FM and Astral Media 's CJOT-FM , which it had licensed in August 2008 to serve the Ottawa - Gatineau radio market. Moore asked the commission to assess whether the francophone population of the Ottawa-Gatineau area was sufficiently well-served by existing French radio services, and to consider licensing one or more of

1584-618: Is a public organization in Canada with mandate as a regulatory agency for broadcasting and telecommunications. It was created in 1976 when it took over responsibility for regulating telecommunication carriers. Prior to 1976, it was known as the Canadian Radio and Television Commission , which was established in 1968 by the Parliament of Canada to replace the Board of Broadcast Governors . Its headquarters

1672-675: Is located in the Central Building (Édifice central) of Les Terrasses de la Chaudière in Gatineau , Quebec . The CRTC was originally known as the Canadian Radio-Television Commission. In 1976, jurisdiction over telecommunications services, most of which were then delivered by monopoly common carriers (for example, telephone companies), was transferred to it from the Canadian Transport Commission although

1760-490: Is not unlawful as provided by The Radiocommuncation Act Section 4(1)(b), which states: "No person shall, except under and in accordance with a radio authorization, install, operate or possess radio apparatus, other than (b)a radio apparatus that is capable only of the reception of broadcasting and that is not a distribution undertaking. (radio apparatus" means a device or combination of devices intended for, or capable of being used for, radiocommunication)." Satellite radio poses

1848-488: Is often the lightning rod for policy criticism that could arguably be better directed at the government itself. Complaints against broadcasters, such as concerns around offensive programming, are dealt with by the Canadian Broadcast Standards Council (CBSC), an independent broadcast industry association, rather than by the CRTC, although CBSC decisions can be appealed to the CRTC if necessary. However,

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1936-500: Is opposed to any approval of Al Jazeera in Canada. The CRTC ruling applied to Al Jazeera and not to its English-speaking sister network Al Jazeera English , which was launched two years after the ruling. Fox News Channel : Until 2004, the CRTC's apparent reluctance to grant a digital licence to Fox News Channel under the same policy which made it difficult for RAI to enter the country – same-genre competition from foreign services – had angered many conservative Canadians, who believed

2024-525: Is responsible for allocating frequencies and call signs, managing the broadcast spectrum, and regulating other technical issues such as interference with electronics equipment. The CRTC has in the past regulated the prices cable television broadcast distributors are allowed to charge. In most major markets, however, prices are no longer regulated due to increased competition for broadcast distribution from satellite television . The CRTC also regulates which channels broadcast distributors must or may offer. Per

2112-562: Is run by up to 13 full-time members (including the chairman, the vice-chairman of broadcasting, and the vice-chairman of telecommunications) appointed by the Cabinet for renewable terms of up to five years. However, unlike the more directly political appointees of the American Federal Communications Commission , the CRTC is an arms-length regulatory body with more autonomous authority over telecommunications. For example,

2200-548: Is to create a market in which Canadian networks can realize revenue through advertising sales in spite of their inability to match the rates that the much larger American networks can afford to pay for syndicated programming. This policy is also why Canadian viewers do not see American advertisements during the Super Bowl , even when tuning into one of the many American networks carried on Canadian televisions. The CRTC also regulates radio in Canada, including community radio , where

2288-574: The Commission for Complaints for Telecom-Television Services (CCTS) opened its doors. Third Party ISP Access refers to a ruling forcing Cable operators (MSO) to offer Internet access to third party resellers. The commission currently has some jurisdiction over the provision of local landline telephone service in Canada. This is largely limited to the major incumbent carriers, such as Bell Canada and Telus , for traditional landline service (but not Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP)). It has begun

2376-548: The United States at one time. After going public in 1970, the company grew rapidly, and became the top cable provider in the United States. After a failed merger attempt with Bell Atlantic in 1994, it was purchased in 1999 by AT&T , whose cable television assets in select markets were later acquired by Charter Communications , Cox Communications , and then Cablevision and Comcast Corporation . After graduating from Southwestern Oklahoma State University , Bob Magness

2464-622: The United States but not in Canada. Users of these unlicensed services contend that they are not directly breaking any laws by simply using the equipment. The equipment is usually purchased from an American supplier (although some merchants have attempted to set up shop in Canada) and the services are billed to an American postal address. The advent of online billing and the easy availability of credit card services has made it relatively easy for almost anyone to maintain an account in good standing, regardless of where they actually live. Sec. 9(1)(c) of

2552-406: The federal cabinet known as orders-in-council , represent the bulk of the CRTC's jurisdiction. In many cases, such as the cabinet-directed prohibition on foreign ownership for broadcasters and the legislated principle of the predominance of Canadian content, these acts and orders often leave the CRTC less room to change policy than critics sometimes suggest, and the result is that the commission

2640-520: The 15 percent discount on Turner programming that would have lasted 20 years, and Time Warner had to pay $ 67 million to cover TCI's taxes due. Magness died in November 1996, with a 26 percent share of the company. No one believed this meant the end of Malone's tenure as head of TCI, even though Malone called Magness his "mentor" and "father figure". Still, TCI had $ 15 billion in debt and negative cash flow of $ 400 million for 1996. Malone believed he could turn

2728-568: The 1990s, the CRTC rejected applications by Milestone Radio to launch a radio station in Toronto which would have been Canada's first urban music station; in both cases, the CRTC instead granted licences to stations that duplicated formats already offered by other stations in the Toronto market. The decision has been widely cited as one of the single most significant reasons why Canadian hip hop had difficulty establishing its commercial viability throughout

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2816-463: The 1990s. The CRTC finally granted a licence to Milestone in 2000, after a cabinet order-in-council directed the commission to license two new radio stations that reflected the cultural diversity of the Toronto market, and CFXJ-FM launched in 2001. CHOI-FM : The CRTC announced it would not renew the licence of the popular radio station CHOI-FM in Quebec City , after having previously sanctioned

2904-460: The 35% rule on local radio stations, was necessary because unlicensed U.S. receivers were already flooding into the country, so that enforcing a ban on these receivers would be nearly impossible (see below). This explanation did not satisfy cultural nationalists, who demanded that the federal cabinet overturn the decision and mandate a minimum of 35% Canadian content. Supporters of the decision argue that satellite radio can only be feasibly set up as

2992-426: The 50% not already owned by TCI. TCI and US West announced a joint venture, and in 1992 the joint venture company became Telewest Communications . By June, the deal was approved. A week later on June 8 the deal was finalized with TCI acquiring the remaining 46% of United Artists, to allow full control. During the autumn of 1993 talks were also held with Flextech (a British television programming provider). Under

3080-570: The Broadcasting Act the commission also gives priority to Canadian signals—many non-Canadian channels which compete with Canadian channels are thus not approved for distribution in Canada. The CRTC argues that allowing free trade in television stations would overwhelm the smaller Canadian market, preventing it from upholding its responsibility to foster a national conversation. Some people, however, consider this tantamount to censorship . The CRTC's simultaneous substitution rules require that when

3168-599: The CATV provider for the city of Denver, Colorado and the city of Glendale, Colorado . Mile-Hi Cablevision had been in business since 1983. And prior to the merger, TCI served only the suburbs around the city & county of Denver. In Spring 1993, Bell Atlantic began looking at merger partners, including cable companies. TCI and Liberty Media would be acquired for $ 11.8 billion in stock and assumption of $ 9.8 billion in debt. And $ 5 billion in Liberty properties could likely be added to

3256-740: The CRTC is also sometimes erroneously criticized for CBSC decisions — for example, the CRTC was erroneously criticized for the CBSC's decisions pertaining to the airing of Howard Stern 's terrestrial radio show in Canada in the late 1990s, as well as the CBSC's controversial ruling on the Dire Straits song " Money for Nothing ". The commission is not fully equivalent to the U.S. Federal Communications Commission , which has additional powers over technical matters, in broadcasting and other aspects of communications, in that country. In Canada, Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (formerly Industry Canada)

3344-562: The CRTC licensed the proposal by Canadian Satellite Communications Inc, a consortium of Canadian broadcasting companies including Allarcom of Edmonton, Western International Communications of Vancouver, Maclean Hunter and Selkirk Broadcasting of Toronto, Telemedia of Montreal, Philippe de Gaspe Beaubien, a Quebec broadcast executive, and Rolf Hougen, a businessman whose interests included CKRW radio and WHTV Cablevision of Whitehorse. CANCOM began test broadcasts with three (CITV, CHCH, BCTV) of its four signals on 15 July 1981, swapped one of

3432-598: The CRTC outraged some Canadian cultural nationalists (such as the Friends of Canadian Broadcasting ) and labour unions by licensing two companies, Canadian Satellite Radio and Sirius Canada to offer satellite radio services in Canada. The two companies are in partnership with American firms XM Satellite Radio and Sirius Satellite Radio respectively, and in accordance with the CRTC decision will only need to offer ten percent Canadian content. The CRTC contends that this low level of Canadian content, particularly when compared to

3520-491: The CRTC requires that at least 15% of each station's output must be locally produced spoken word content. In a major May 1999 decision on "New Media", the CRTC held that under the Broadcasting Act the CRTC had jurisdiction over certain content communicated over the Internet including audio and video, but excluding content that is primarily alphanumeric such as emails and most webpages. It also issued an exemption order committing to

3608-458: The CRTC's decisions rely more on a judiciary process relying on evidence submitted during public consultations, rather than along party lines as the American FCC is prone to do. The CRTC Interconnection Steering Committee (CISC) assists in developing information, procedures and guidelines for the CRTC's regulatory activities. Tele-Communications Inc. Tele-Communications, Inc. ( TCI )

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3696-608: The Canadian marketplace, a move intended to create a public outcry and a threat that Canadians would resort to using satellite viewing cards obtained via the US in order to watch RAI, even though these cards were either grey market or black market , according to different analyses (see below). Following unprecedented foreign led and domestic political interference with the CRTC's quasi-judicial independent regulatory process, within six months of its original decision, an abrupt CRTC "review" of its policy on third-language foreign services determined to drop virtually all restrictions and adopt

3784-412: The Canadian trucking industry, specifically tracking and two-way messaging. Shaw Tracking was later acquired by Omnitracs, LLC on September 18, 2017 for an undisclosed sum. Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission ( CRTC ; French : Conseil de la radiodiffusion et des télécommunications canadiennes )

3872-556: The Federal Court of Canada. CBC Newsworld : The CRTC licensed the CBC on November 30, 1987, to provide a national all-news television network. Its competitor applicant, Alberta -based Allarcom , appealed this decision to the House of Commons of Canada . It was overturned and there were questions of whether federal politicians should meddle in CRTC decisions. Because of this the network launch

3960-609: The French language applications, which included a Christian music station, a community radio station and a campus radio station for the Université du Québec en Outaouais , in addition to or instead of the approved stations. The review ultimately identified a viable frequency for a third station, and CJFO-FM launched in 2010. Bell Canada usage-based billing : On October 28, 2010, the CRTC handed down its final decision on how wholesale customers can be billed by large network owners. Under

4048-584: The Radiocommunication Act creates a prohibition against all decoding of encrypted programming signals, followed by an exception where authorization is received from the person holding the lawful right in Canada to transmit and authorize decoding of the signal. This means receiving the encrypted programming of DishNetwork or DirecTV, even with a grey market subscription, may be construed as unlawful (this remains an unresolved Constitutional issue). Notwithstanding, possession of DishNetwork or DirecTV equipment

4136-442: The US as well. In 1985, senior vice president Steven D. Comrie struck a controversial deal with US cable operators to deliver Cancom's Detroit signals to remote villages and communities across Alaska. Despite objections from various US copyright holders, Comrie and a group of Alaska cable operators led by Gordon Rock of Seattle, WA, won federal approval for statewide distribution of Cancom's Detroit channels. However, Cancom's foray into

4224-743: The US was stalled when Canadian trade officials were reportedly warned by US authorities that no such exemption would be considered for the lower 48 states. Comrie later left Cancom to join Rock and US cellular industry pioneer Craig McCaw to co-found Netlink USA, and the Kirkland WA-based company launched its DBS lineup of Denver's ABC, CBS, and NBC affiliates, plus PBS and independents at the Western Cable Show in Anaheim, CA in December 1986. In later years, Netlink

4312-511: The United States as important concessions. Despite popular perception that the CRTC banned Sirius Canada from broadcasting Howard Stern 's program, this is not the case. Sirius Canada in fact initially chose not to air Stern based on the possibility of a future issue with the CRTC, although the company reversed its decision and began offering Howard Stern in 2006. 2008 Ottawa radio licences : On November 21, 2008, federal Minister of Canadian Heritage and Official Languages James Moore issued

4400-661: The abbreviation CRTC remained the same. On the telecom side, the CRTC originally regulated only privately held common carriers: Other telephone companies, many of which were publicly owned and entirely within a province's borders, were regulated by provincial authorities until court rulings during the 1990s affirmed federal jurisdiction over the sector, which also included some fifty small independent incumbents, most of them in Ontario and Quebec. Notable in this group were: The CRTC regulates all Canadian broadcasting and telecommunications activities and enforces rules it creates to carry out

4488-474: The broadcasting industry. Moreover, it does not deal with the availability of spectrum for mobile phone service, which is part of the Industry Canada mandate, nor the maintenance of competition, which is largely the responsibility of The Competition Bureau . Any transfer of more than 30% of the ownership of a broadcasting licence (including cable/satellite distribution licences) requires advance approval of

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4576-628: The cable, satellite, or other broadcast distributor must send the CTV feed over the signal of the carried ABC affiliate, even where the ABC version is somehow different, particularly commercials. (These rules are not intended to apply in case of differing episodes of the same series; this difference may not always be communicated to distributors, although this is rather rare.) Viewers via home antenna who receive both American and Canadian networks on their personal sets are not affected by sim-sub. The goal of this policy

4664-407: The commission has very little to do with the regulation of mobile phone service, outside of "undue preference" issues (for example, a carrier offering a superior rate or service to some subscribers and not others without a good reason). It does not regulate service rates, service quality, or other business practices, and commission approval is not necessary for wireless provider sales or mergers as in

4752-485: The commission. One condition normally taken into account in such a decision is the level of foreign ownership; federal regulations require that Canadian citizens ultimately own a majority of a broadcast licence. Usually this takes the form of a public process, where interested parties can express their concerns and sometimes including a public hearing, followed by a commission decision. While landline and mobile telephone providers must also be majority-owned by Canadians under

4840-498: The company around. This meant higher rates for customers as well as programmers. Malone even succeeded in getting Fox News Channel to pay $ 200 million for his companies to add the network. At the same time, cost cutting had to take place, and many of the cable customers were in rural areas with old equipment and limited offerings. Upgrading to fiber optic service, which could be used for Internet and telephone service, would be cost-effective only in urban areas. Satellite TV, while not

4928-537: The deal. Numerous regulatory concerns made the deal tricky; regional telephone companies could not offer long distance service or transmit satellite television services such as Discovery Channel . TCI would also have to sell operations in Bell Atlantic territory. As for antitrust concerns, Bell Atlantic argued that competing telephone services could be offered where TCI had cable systems, and video services could compete with TCI. Vice President Al Gore supported

5016-509: The federal Telecommunications Act , the CRTC is not responsible for enforcement of this provision. In fact, the commission does not require licences at all for telephone companies, and CRTC approval is therefore not generally required for the sale of a telephone company, unless said company also owns a broadcast licence. Since 1987, the CRTC has been involved in several notable decisions, some of which led to controversy and debate. Milestone Radio : In two separate rounds of licence hearings in

5104-421: The four Detroit affiliates of the three major commercial networks and PBS: WJBK-TV , WDIV-TV , WXYZ-TV and WTVS . Cancom was a world leader with its pioneering technical expertise (including the first commercial and consumer applications of digital encryption for satellite TV distribution), and the first carrier to offer consumers direct broadcast satellite (DBS) services. Cancom's services proved popular in

5192-545: The go-ahead to implement usage-based billing. This ruling according to Teksavvy handcuffs the competitive market. This has been asked by Stephen Harper and Parliament to have the decision reviewed. According to a tweet by Industry Minister Tony Clement , unless the CRTC reverses this decision, the government will use its override power to reverse the decision. While an exact number has not been determined, thousands of Canadians have purchased and used what they contend to be grey market radio and television services, licensed in

5280-410: The gradual deregulation of such services where, in the commission's opinion, a sufficient level of competition exists. The CRTC is sometimes blamed for the current state of the mobile phone industry in Canada, in which there are only three national mobile network operators – Bell Mobility , Telus Mobility , and Rogers Wireless – as well as a handful of MVNOs operating on these networks. In fact,

5368-616: The idea of improving the nation's infrastructure , and the business community took his statement to mean administration approval of the merger. The $ 33 billion deal, based on a $ 54 per share price for Bell Atlantic stock, would have been the largest in American telecommunications history, the resulting company serving one in four cable TV customers. But it fell apart for many reasons, including declining stock prices for both companies. Malone, who would have made over $ 1 billion, wanted more shares of Bell Atlantic when its price dropped below $ 54, which Ray Smith refused to do because it would lessen

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5456-437: The largest cable company in the United States. In 1982, Malone hired Peter Barton, who called himself the company's " Jimmy Olsen " because he just did whatever was needed, fresh from Harvard Business School . Barton went on to become president of TCI's Cable Value Network (later QVC ) in 1986, and in 1991, president of TCI spinoff Liberty Media . Barton had a playful side and even kept toys in his Liberty Media office, and

5544-421: The leader of the post-fascist party of Italy) had unilaterally terminated a 20-year-old agreement and stripped all of its 1,500 to 2,000 annual hours of programming from Telelatino (TLN), a Canadian-run channel which had devoted 95% of its prime time schedule to RAI programs for 20 years since TLN was founded. All Italian-Canadians were denied RAI programming by RAI International's removal of its programming from

5632-563: The long distance, wireless and dial-up Internet service of AT&T with the cable, high-speed Internet and telecommunications services of TCI. For the first time, AT&T would be able to offer local telephone service. To do this, the company could have bought a Baby bell such as SBC Communications (which purchased AT&T in 2005 and took the AT&;T name), but this would have meant regulatory problems. Liberty Media stockholders would receive separate tracking stock . Federal regulators and

5720-411: The major Canadian commercial networks, along with several independent services. The company also distributes a limited number of American network affiliates from markets such as Boston , Rochester , Buffalo , Detroit , Minneapolis , Spokane and Seattle . Some Canadian cable companies use Shaw for these services where cost or technical issues prevent the use of a closer non-Shaw signal, even when

5808-423: The network was deliberately being kept out due to its perceived conservative bias , particularly given the long-standing availability of services such as CNN and BBC World in Canada. On November 18, 2004, however, the CRTC approved an application by cable companies to offer Fox News Channel on the digital cable tier. Fox commenced broadcasting in Canada shortly thereafter. Satellite radio : In June 2005,

5896-399: The number of Cancom channels carried on the cable system and the number of subscribers receiving the channels. The company also was licensed to carry the signals of nine radio stations; eight as originally proposed, plus CKRW of Whitehorse (added during the hearings). Through the 1970s, the CRTC had established the principle of allowing cable television companies to carry "three-plus-one" from

5984-459: The original terms of the proposed deal, Flextech would acquire TCI's European programming business in exchange for shares. By January the deal was complete with TCI acquired 40-60% of Flextech while Flextech acquired 100% of Bravo, 25% of UK Gold , and 31% of UK Living and 25% of the Children's Channel which increased its share in that channel. In Spring of 1995 TCI purchased Mile-Hi Cablevision,

6072-492: The other hand, digital service had its disadvantages. Customers who did not even want a box would still lose channels so that digital channels could be added. And General Instrument only reluctantly agreed to allow multiple suppliers to bring TCI's costs down. In 1997 TCI sold ten of its cable systems in NJ and NY to Cablevision . TCI improved its fortunes, hiring Leo Hindery as president and making Malone chairman and CEO. Still, it

6160-465: The plan which starts within 90 days, Bell will be able to charge wholesale service providers a flat monthly fee to connect to its network, and for a set monthly usage limit per each ISP customer the ISP has. Beyond that set limit, individual users will be charged per gigabyte, depending on the speed of their connections. Customers using the fastest connections of five megabits per second, for example, will have

6248-585: The policies assigned to it; the best-known of these is probably the Canadian content rules. The CRTC reports to the Parliament of Canada through the Minister of Canadian Heritage , which is responsible for the Broadcasting Act, and has an informal relationship with Industry Canada , which is responsible for the Telecommunications Act . Provisions in these two acts, along with less-formal instructions issued by

6336-583: The primary owner. The company was previously required by the CRTC to be operated independently of Shaw's cable holdings. However, in light of the name change, it is unclear if Shaw's satellite-based companies would remain independent from the cable division. In 1980, the CRTC began a proceeding to expand the choice of television and radio signals available to Canadians who were then regarded as underserved, often with only CBC Television and CBC Radio available to them. Several companies filed proposals, and early in 1981,

6424-626: The rapid progress in the industry they are working on a more in depth study to be concluded in May 2012. The CRTC does not directly regulate rates, quality of service issues, or business practices for Internet service providers. However, the CRTC does continually monitor the sector and associated trends. To handle complains, the CRTC was ordered by the Government of Canada to create an independent, industry-funded agency to resolve complaints from consumers and small business retail telecom customers. In July 2007,

6512-439: The same usage insurance plan it sells to retail customers. Bell appealed both requirements, citing that the rules do not apply to cable companies and that they constituted proactive rate regulation by the CRTC, which goes against government official policy direction that the regulator only intervene in markets after a competitive problem has been proven. In Thursday's decision, the CRTC rescinded both requirements, thereby giving Bell

6600-433: The station for failing to uphold its promise of performance and then, during the years following, receiving about 50 complaints about offensive behaviour by radio jockeys which similarly contravened CRTC rules on broadcast hate speech. Many thousands of the station's fans marched in the streets and on Parliament Hill against the decision, and the parent company of CHOI, Genex Corp., appealed the CRTC decision unsuccessfully to

6688-638: The station is from a different time zone . (However, use of the Shaw feeds is not required for these services; cable companies are free to use any signal provider whose distribution is technically feasible.) As well, Shaw distributes a number of Canadian radio stations , and a few American stations, for cable FM and digital distribution. In total, over 380 English, French and multilingual signals are offered via 49 Anik F1 and F2 transponders . Shaw Tracking (originally CANCOM Tracking ) provided commercial transportation and logistics solutions via satellite to

6776-434: The telecommunication industry, media producers, and cultural leaders among others. The evidence was inconclusive, suggesting that an increased availability of OTT options is not having a negative impact on the availability or diversity of Canadian content, one of the key policy mandates of the CRTC, nor are there signs that there has been a significant decline of television subscriptions through cable or satellite. However, given

6864-478: The three in November (CHCH for TCTV), and went into full operation on 1 January 1982 with all four signals: independent stations CITV Edmonton , CHCH-TV Hamilton , CTV affiliate BCTV Vancouver , and a French-language channel known as TCTV but which largely represented the programming of CFTM-TV Montreal . Initially, Cancom charged cable television companies anywhere from fifteen cents to sixty-five cents per TV channel per subscriber (channel subs) depending on

6952-470: The time, it was the 10th largest cable company in the United States. By 1972, with 100,000 subscribers, Magness needed someone with more business knowledge to run the operation. He decided on John Malone, president of Jerrold Electronics , a division of General Instrument . Malone took on the bankers who wanted to call in their loans, and effectively saved the company from bankruptcy . Magness made Malone CEO but remained as chairman. By 1982 Malone had made TCI

7040-480: The total number of subscribers to 18,000. Magness later moved to Scottsbluff, Nebraska . Over time, Magness acquired more systems but remained in Bozeman. By 1965, Daniels told him the companies needed to be located in a larger city. Salt Lake City and Denver, Colorado , were both considered. In 1968, the companies moved to Denver and became Tele-Communications Inc. Tele-Communications Inc. went public in 1970. At

7128-464: The two companies' shareholders approved the merger February 17, 1999. By that time, the value of the stock portion of the deal had increased to $ 43.5 billion. The Federal Communications Commission did not require TCI to give other companies access to its cable lines, despite requests by America Online and others. TCI had made its cable lines capable of providing Internet access, and AT&T wanted those same lines to provide local phone service, which it

7216-401: The value of existing shares. The two companies also had different cultures. Bell Atlantic paid dividends and was used to being regulated, while TCI tended to invest in the business rather than pay dividends. And thus ended a $ 20 billion project to expand the information superhighway , though other mergers promised to put the project back on track, with a more local emphasis rather than attempting

7304-533: The wires himself. Two years later Magness sold the system and was looking for a way to invest the sales proceeds. Another cable pioneer, Bill Daniels , told him about a community antenna system in Bozeman, Montana . The Kearns-Tribune Corp., publisher of The Salt Lake Tribune , which owned a cable system in Reno, Nevada , began relaying signals by common carrier microwave from Salt Lake City in 1956. In 1958 it became

7392-428: Was a cable television provider in the United States, and for most of its history was controlled by Bob Magness and John Malone . The company was started in 1958 in Bozeman, Montana as Western Microwave, Inc. and Community Television, Inc. , two firms with common ownership. The companies merged in 1968 and operations moved to Denver , taking the name Tele-Communications Inc. It was the largest cable operator in

7480-501: Was a cotton seed salesman and cattle rancher . In 1956, he met two men who were stranded and needed a ride. Learning that they wanted to build a community antenna system in Paducah, Texas , he decided to raise the money for a similar system in Memphis, Texas . He sold his cattle, took out a mortgage on his home and borrowed $ 2,500 from his father. His wife did the office work while Bob put up

7568-437: Was delayed from September 1, 1988, to July 31, 1989. RAI International : In Summer 2004, this Italian government-controlled channel was denied permission to broadcast independently in Canada on the grounds that it had acted and was likely to act contrary to established Canadian policies. RAI International's latest politically appointed President (an avowed right wing nationalist and former spokesperson for Giorgio Almirante,

7656-487: Was regarded as a company likely to be taken over. TCI was acquired by AT&T in 1999 and in 2002, Comcast acquired the rest of TCI's cable television systems. In 1997 TCI merged with the Kearns-Tribune Corp., publisher of The Salt Lake Tribune , Utah's largest newspaper. Kearns-Tribune Corp. was a large holder of TCI stock. On June 24, 1998, AT&T, the nation's largest provider of telephone service, announced

7744-529: Was sold to the largest US cable operator at the time, TCI . Cancom later picked up additional stations including Seattle's KING (NBC) and KOMO (ABC) to offer a greater diversity of time zone feeds for its primary Canadian market, as alternatives to WXYZ and WDIV. Shaw Broadcast (originally CANCOM Broadcast ) distributes both specialty cable channels and regular broadcast network affiliates via one of North America's largest full-service commercial signal distribution networks. It distributes affiliates of all

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